June 23, 2017

The safety of our community is a top priority. Over the years, we have all worked together to overcome spikes in car break-ins, property damage and theft that too many of us have experienced.

Project Comet has been successful in reducing the amount of vandalism and thefts in our neighbourhood and Smashed Window Club – River Heights Facebook group is doing an excellent job of raising awareness and sharing information but we can’t sit back now.

On May 10, I asked a group of leaders — from community centres to business associations to resident groups — to sit down and share their recent experiences with safety in their neighbourhoods at a community safety roundtable and discuss our needs with area representatives from the Winnipeg Police Service (WPS). New to Division 2, Staff Sgt. Darren Carlson and Insp. Mike Herman, as well as Patrol Sgt. Anna Janzen, joined us to listen to our concerns and provide practical and important tips to keep our homes, families and neighbourhoods safe this summer and all year long.

Confirmed by these officers, we have made our community safer through our efforts to stay connected and share information.

It’s important that we all continue to do the following in our everyday lives:

1) Protect your home, property and family. Make sure your home and car doors are locked, valuables are out of sight and your yard is well-lit.

2) Report incidents and unusual activity to the WPS: The WPS distributes resources and patrols based on hot spots, determined by your calls and reports of suspicious activity.

Report any incidents of vandalism, theft and unusual behaviour, regardless of damage or impact to the police as soon as possible through the following options:

3) Join a community group, such as Smashed Window Club, to share information about incidents and concerns in your area. Group awareness is one of the best ways to prevent crime and keep our neighbourhoods safe.

Thank you to everyone who has been so dedicated over the years to working together with my colleagues and I on city council and the WPS to reduce the instances of crime and make our communities safer for everyone.

If you are interested in getting more involved or want to discuss your concerns, please contact me any time at 204-986-5236 or jorlikow@winnipeg.ca.